Bittersweet
by just a little bit of daisy
Summary: Honeykit has always dreamed of being the best warrior she can be. But her mother will not have it her way. Honeypaw is devestated to find that her clan is forcing her into being a medicine cat. Determined to prove them wrong, she brings back a loner who has been stealing prey. But she never expected to develop feelings for him, and definitely not the jealousy that comes with them..
1. Bittersweet Prologue

"Ready?" Honeykit whispered to Silverkit, angling her tail in the direction of their destination. Silverkit nodded, a mischievous grin on her face. "Blossomkit?" Honeykit questioned, anxiously searching her sister's green eyes for the telltale sign of betrayal. She muffled a sigh of relief when she saw only worry mixed with confidence harbored inside them. "She's gonna snitch!" Silverkit complained in doubt, flexing her grey paws menacingly. "N-No I won't!" Blossomkit insisted, raising her voice just a bit more than a whisper. "Kits?" Called a groggy Tsunamiwave from the nursery. Honeykit whipped her head around and peered through the piercing cover of darkness that encased the nursery. Blossomkit gasped and jumped in alarm, but Silverkit pinned and silenced her quickly. Honeykit crouched low to the snow-covered ground. She stifled a defensive hiss, praying the cover of darkness would shield the runaways. Tsunamiwave gave a sigh, which she quickly renounced with a groan of pain. The gray queen whimpered and shook a bit, then yowled. "HELP, THEY'RE COMING! GO GET CLOUDFROST!" She screeched, shaking violently. All the queens woke up and gasped, murmuring amongst themselves anxiously. Halfface, Silverkit's, Cariboukit's, and Dogkit's mother dipped her head and turned to leave. The runaways ducked to avoid her vision and scampered behind a clump of snow.

"Now's our chance!" Silverkit growled quietly. Honeykit's heart ached to comfort the kitting queen and her paws itched with excitement to meet her new denmates. She also knew that if they were caught, everyone would be more furious that they'd left during such a horrible time - but her need to escape Beeflower was much, _much_ stronger. She reluctantly nodded and realized her sister, Blossomkit, and her truest friend, Silverkit, were waiting for her word of approval. It had been, after all, her own idea to run away. She'd decided on such a bizarre thought because of the shared hate she and her mother, Beeflower had developed.

Silverkit had agreed to come because she'd been 'excited for some action in this stupid _borrriiiinggg_ clan'. Timid Blossomkit had agreed to come because she refused to be anywhere Honeykit wasn't. They'd tried the other kits but all had refused. In fact, Blossomkit, Silverkit, and Honeykit had had a horrendous fright when Briarkit, Rubykit, and Dogkit had tried ratting them out; but the three had quickly interrupted with distractions. And, now, here they were, their paws thundering against the snow as quiet as they could manage. They slipped through the dirtplace tunnel and headed Northeast, towards the abandoned two-leg nest.

The plan was to leave for a bit, then return heroes, their jaws filled bountifully with the prey their clan needed. They would start at the abandoned nest in hopes of coming across rats. Silverkit had come up with the two-leg place idea that they could steal food from there. 'It might not be actual prey,' Blossomkit agreed, 'But it'll be food nonetheless and they'll be happy to get at least something in their stomachs!' Although Honeykit cared deeply about her clan's wellbeing, she had a secret vision in her mind, too. Returning with all that food, a hero and a leader to the journey, the small kit hoped Beeflower would finally accept and love her just as she did Blossomkit. She hoped that her mother would be so worried about where they'd gone that she'd immediately love her as queens normally did to their kits. She wished Beeflower would protect her with the sheer, fierce power of motherly love from the start, but that had not been her fate. Maybe it was Blossomkit's, but not Honeykit's.

She sighed and watched her paws moving one in front of the other. She walked slowly, ears and tail drooping as she thought of her mother. Her fur bristled in alarm as she felt two cats by her side. Then Honeykit realized it was only her comrades and allowed the tension to subdue. Silverkit smoothed her tail across her friend's back in comfort and watched Blossomkit staying strictly at her sister's side. Suddenly, there was the sound of a branch cracking and quiet pawsteps. "Ugh, I'm mouse-brained!" A voice hissed angrily, making more awkward noises.

The kits crouched, paralyzed with fear and praying that darkness was on their side. "GRAAAGH!" Roared a fluffy cream-colored apprentice springing from the bare trees. Flowerpaw sniffed the air then smiled, clearly satisfied with herself. "A-ha!" The awkward, bubbly apprentice squealed. She pranced over to the kits like a proud hunting dog, with her head held high as though she'd caught the largest prey. But apparently, she couldn't see them. She could _smell_ the kits but her eyesight refused to prevail. "Hmmm, I smell a…A wild Blossomkit! A wild Silverkit, and a wild Honeykit! Aaaand you should be…" She sniffed again and placed one paw on the ground and stepped forward. At that very moment, Honeykit signaled and the kits bolted.

"Hey, no fair!" Flowerpaw whined, then got up and started after them. Honeykit ran for her life, as far as her paws could take her. She felt Flowerpaw hot on their tails and forced herself faster with a new wave of fear. Blossomkit skidded to a halt, hoping to be able to turn oast Flowerpaw in a moment of surprise. It didn't work, however, and Flowerpaw swiftly grabbed her. Blossomkit let out a yelp and struggled, but Flowerpaw held on firmly and kept running. 'I'm so sorry,' Honeykit thought regretfully, 'I don't know what to do, Sissy. I don't want to make stupid mistakes by having all of us caught and taken back. Maybe you have a reason to return but I don't besides you guys and I can't turn back when I'm this close.'

Silverkit screeched and snarled angrily as she was grabbed, kicking and clawing. Honeykit didn't turn around, forcing herself to keep moving. Every inch of her body told her to help but she needed to escape. Her pnly objective being to run away, Honeykit surged forward blindly. The dark night clouded her vision, but she could still hear it when Flowerpaw skidded to a halt and shouted: "HONEYKIT, LOOK OUT! " Honeykit tried to stop but the momentum senf her flyjng forward into a frozen lake. She heard screams of fear and struggled on the ice, drifting. She had screams of her own, too. Then, she tripped and hit her head - hard. Her eyes fluttered open and close dizzily and she heard thd ice cracking beneath her. She screamed and shot up, trying to outrun the ice and ignore the blood gushing from her head. At every quick pawstep the ice cracked. She could barely make out the shore and leaped to it, sticking out her paws. But she missed and fell down with terrified screeches. She braced for impact but felt none, only a tight hold on her scruff.

Author's note: Yay! I've finally figured out how to download FF. Hiya, I'm Daisy, a new member here. This is my very first story thing. Criticism and advice is very much requested since I kind of need help navigating lol. Silverkit, Halfface, Dogpaw, and Cariboupaw do not belong to me. They belong to my best Amino friend Peach Sofa. Peacho has given me her permission to use her ocs for this and gives me advice sometimes, so kudos to her. Well, byeeeee!


	2. Bittersweet Chapter One

Honeykit sighed and sulked, lashing her speckled tail in irritation at nothing. She, Blossomkit, and Silverkit had been sentenced to their apprentice ceremony being delayed by one moon because of 'the incident'. The nursery had since been bare of most of the cats concerning Honeykit's friendships. Almost every kit had been made apprenticed, leaving behind only the previously mentioned kits and Webkit. Silverkit was chatting poor Webkit's ears off and Blossomkit was napping with Honeykit's and Blossomkit's mother, Beeflower. "Silverkit," Halfface called to her daughter, "Your fur is all messed up!" She smiled and laughed as her daughter pranced over, fur fluffed out like a pinecone.

Honeykit frowned, then smiled at her friend. Silverkit didn't notice and remained occupied. Honeykit jumped in surprise as she felt paws battering her face. "C'mon, let's go play!" Blossomkit purred and grinned. Honeykit smiled and nodded. She looked back at Beeflower but her mother said nothing but "Don't let anything sneak up on you so easily." Honeykit had taken the worst of the adventure; she'd fallen in a frozen lake on her head. Flowerpaw had just managed to grab her before she'd fallen through the ice. Her tail lashed in embarrassment at the memory. As a result, she was pretty weak, but she knew she needed some exercise.

Silverkit, Honeykit, and Blossomkit had left camp while Tsunamiwave had been kitting Webkit in hopes of finding food for their clan at an abandoned Twoleg's nest. They knew this last leaf-bare was hard and only wanted to help, but that wasn't how Hawkstar had seen it. Blossomkit giggled as she passed the moss ball to Honeykit, breaking her thought. It hit her light ginger paws and she jumped in surprise. She landed on it and tripped. "Oof," she croaked as she splayed out on the nursery floor. She heard laughter all around her and saw that everyone, excluding Beeflower and herself were laughing. She turned and saw that Dogpaw and Cariboupaw had come to talk to their mother and sister. She noticed her father, Iceblaze, was with them trying very hard not to laugh. "It's not funny!" Honeykit whined, her fur fluffing out to twice her size. Most of the laughing stopped, except for Iceblaze. She looked down at her paws and imagined just how silly she'd looked flailing about in the air like a fish on land. She began to laugh good-naturedly with them. "Okay..Maybe it is." She giggled and relaxed as everyone laughed with her. When they'd finished, she smiled as Iceblaze padded towards her. "Here, let me help you." He untangled her from the moss and grinned at his daughter. Honeykit and Blossomkit rarely saw their father; he was a senior warrior whom was very respected and therefore busy. They knew he loved them, but every time they saw him, it was either awkward or happy. This time, apparently, was a happy memory.

"Thanks." Honeykit smiled. Her crowd broke away into their own little cliques. Dogpaw was fawning over Webkit as he practiced crouching with Tsunamiwave watching over him protectively. Tidefur came in to see his son. He and Tsunamiwave were always fighting, but that didn't mean he didn't love Webkit. Cariboupaw ventured over to talk with his mother and Silverkit. Blossomkit showed Iceblaze her hunter's crouch and he criticized her, gently nudging her this way and that. She quickly got the gist of it and pounced on a leaf that had mistakenly fluttered into the nursery. She jumped up and smiled triumphantly with the leaf hanging from her mouth. Honeykit smiled at the praise her sister got and giggled as Webkit 'attacked' Dogpaw. She turned to see what her mother was doing.

Beeflower was watching from a distance, her muzzle wrinkled in disgust as she saw Honeykit look at her. The fluffy light ginger kit paid no mind and played with her moss ball. She watched from the corner of her green eye as Beeflower stood up and quietly ushered out of the nursery. Honeykit watched as she made her way to the medicine den. Cloudfrost had just been padding out of her den and jumped in surprise at the sight of her visitor. Beeflower began to speak, a look of worry flashing across her face. Cloudfrost seemed to argue for a bit but was reassured and nodded reluctantly. Beeflower smiled and walked back to the nursery. "Beeflower!" Honeykit squeaked, jumping up to greet her mother. "Do you think we'll be apprenticed today?" Beeflower didn't answer and pushed her away. Honeykit frowned, then fought back with a wave of determination. She was going to prove to her mother that she wasn't weak. "Cariboupaw!" She called, bounding over to the silver tom. "I wanna practice battle moves." Silverkit's brother blinked in surprise, then looked back at Beeflower for reassurance. She watched with interested narrow yellow eyes and nodded, then gave her paw a lick. Honeykit smiled enthusiastically as she followed Cariboupaw outside the nursery. "Okay, uh…Try dodging my paw swipes to work on your speed and balance." He waited for her to prepare, then swiped gently. She wasn't fast enough and he gently knocked her down. She scrambled to her paws and shook of the snow. She aimed at him and batted at him, but only caught the air in her paws. She frowned and lashed her tail. "I'll try again!" She squeaked, analyzing her opponent. "No. That's quite enough." Beeflower's voice boomed behind her. Honeykit jumped in surprise; she hadn't even noticed her mother come up behind her. She hung her head and nodded sadly, before padding back to her nest. Beeflower snorted and glared before heading back to hers. A chilling thought spread through Honeykit like a scorpion's poisonous tail touch. 'How can I ever be a warrior with my stupid clumsy paws?'

Hawkstar's voice thundered all around CrystalClan camp. Halfface squealed and quickly licked Silverkit clean. Silverkit whined impatiently. Honeykit sat a little ways away and groomed herself. Beeflower groomed Blossomkit and smiled down at her. The queens ushered their daughters out to sit underneath the CrystalShard. The CrystalShard was a large mass of crystals of which harbored the leader's den and meeting place. The leader slept on top of the CrystalShard along with their mate if they had one. The CrystalShard was so large that it harbored the deputy, Lotustail watching quietly behind Hawkstar, Hawkstar in the middle, and Rosemarytail, his mate. Honeykit forced excited bounces away. As she walked down, she noticed Iceblaze smile at his daughters, Boneclaws smiled at Silverkit, whom was his daughter. Halfface quickly joined her family after pushing Silverkit forward. Blossomkit and Honeykit walked side-by-side. Honeykit shivered anxiously. tail smiled kindly at them. She'd recently been a queen, mother to Brownpaw, Briarpaw, and Rubypaw, Starlingpaw, and Bramblepaw so she knew all three of the kits very well. Beeflower sat between her sister Daffodilfrost and Iceblaze.

"Today we welcome three kits as apprentices to CrystalClan. As some of you may recall, their ceremony was delayed because of an unnecessary little…adventure. Blossomkit, step forward." Blossomkit did so, quivering with fear. Honeykit longed to comfort her sister but didn't dare defy Hawkstar. "From this day, until you are a warrior, you shall be known as Blossompaw." He scanned the crowd carefully for an eligible mentor. "Aspenfur!" Aspenfur jolted in surprise as he was summoned. He watched Hawkstar nervously with his yellow eyes. "We honor your strength and quick thinking. You will mentor Blossompaw." Blossompaw padded over and they touched ears. She sat and watched eagerly for the ceremony to persist. "There's also a special edition to this ceremony." Cloudfrost shifted as Hawkstar flicked his tail towards her. "Cloudfrost had chosen an apprentice." Yowls of approval broke out; Cloudfrost was very old and getting weaker everyday so they'd all wanted an apprentice for her. Honeykit turned to Silverkit in shock. But her friend was always boasting that she'd be the best warrior! She'd never realized Silverkit had a interest in herbs. Maybe she just wanted to help her clan more than an average warrior? Then Honeykit noticed the same shock harbored in her friend's eyes. Her heart sank in horror as she realized what was happening. Hawkstar waited for the yowls to die down. "Honeykit, step forward." She did so, her paws numb with shock. "You shall be known as Honeypaw from this day until StarClan decides otherwise. Cloudfrost will teach you all she knows. Thank you for your special contribution to your clan." Cloudfrost padded over and bent her fluffy white ears to touch Honeypaw's.

"Silverkit, step forward.'' He once again analyzed his Clanmates. "Aukletwing!" A small gray-red-spotted she-cat jumped in excitement. ''You're a young warrior, however I hope you're ready to pass on your skills of tracking and your hunting skills to Silverpaw. Also, the rogue scents have persisted and we'll…" Honeypaw was barely listening. She felt dizzy, as though she'd been stabbed in her back with the knife of betrayal. Visions danced in her head: Beeflower talking nervously to Cloudfrost. "You're too clumsy, Honeykit," Bramblekit sneered, "We don't wanna play with you." "You're so bad at fighting, Honeykit!" "I don't know how you'll manage to be a warrior with that clumsiness." "No, you've got it wrong! You need to do this. If you don't get it perfect, you'll never be a warrior." "Pay attention more." Honeypaw broke from her memories ad gasped for breath, digging her claws into the ground. She leaned on Cloudfrost, too nauseous without support. Everything was a blur. She could barely make out the vision of cats. "Honeypaw!" She heard someone gasp. More words were passed and thrown at her. She nodded weakly and coughed once more before only feeling a blanket of darkness creep up on her.

Author's note:

Silverpaw, Dogpaw, Cariboupaw, Boneclaws, and Halfface do not belong to me. They belong to my Amino bestie, Peach Sofa. As always, CRITICISM IS WANTED! I forget what I was going to say, so byyyeeee!


	3. Bittersweet Chapter Two

Honeypaw sighed and looked down at her paws. A moon had passed since her's, Blossompaw's, and Silverpaw's ceremony. Cloudfrost, her mentor, was fussing over some herbs but Honeypaw barely listened. 'I don't even want to be a stupid medicine cat,' she thought disdainfully. She angled her ears and listened outside the medicine cats' den. Shardpaw, Runepaw, Prismpaw, and Ivypaw were all chatting about hunting tactics. The littermates broke into good-natured arguing about who'd caught the most prey. She listened to the persistent whines if Webkit from the nursery. "It's not fairrr!" He whined, "I wanna be an apprentice like everybody else! It's so dumb!" His mother, Tsunamiwave's voice was taut with exhaustion. "You've been whining about this all day. Can't you say something else?" She snapped at him and he quickly stopped his fussing. Blossompaw and Dogpaw were giggling near the fresh-kill pile. Rosemarytail chatted with her kits and her mate, Hawkstar. Flowerpaw and Lynxpaw ran around camp, laughing giddily.

"Honeypaw! Are you even paying attention?" Cloudfrost's snaps breeched the gentle coaxe of Honeypaw's thoughts. Cloudfrost glared at her through narrowed yellow eyes and hissed in annoyance. The fluffy white she-cat rarely lost her temper with Honeypaw, and, though she wouldn't be caught dead admitting it, Honeypaw liked her mentor…Just a tad bit. Cloudfrost sighed and relaxed. "Sorry; I didn't get enough sleep." She looked over her shoulder at Hibiscuspaw, whom had recently fallen prey to greencough. The fluffy white she-cat turned back to her apprentice and gestured once more to the tiny stash of coltsfoot they'd managed to salvage. "Okay, do you know what this is?" Honeypaw concentrated hard, flicking her tail. So much to learn! The herb looked just like a dandelion. "Uh…Either dandelion or coltsfoot. Dandelion is used for, um, fevers. Coltsfoot is for breathing.'' Cloudfrost blinked and Honeypaw twitched nervously. Was that disappointment in her mentor's eyes? Pride? Eager to please, Honeypaw ransacked her brain for more knowledge. She panicked and tried to search faster, the little voice in her head screaming the whole time. "Yeah, this is coltsfoot. Good job. And, close enough with the dandelion. We also use it for bee stings." Honeypaw hung her head in shame as Cloudfrost answered. "Hey, it's okay. You were close and you're still learning. Can you check which herbs we need more of?" Honeypaw looked and sniffed at the stashes. She stopped when she saw there was only a tiny bit left of a pink flower. "Bright-eye, for coughs." She only knew this because some greencough had broken out and she'd had to learn how to treat it. Cloudfrost nodded and jumped as Hibiscuspaw started coughing. She rushed to treat her patient. "I'll go get more,'' Honeypaw declared, flicked her tail, and walked out.

She stopped in the middle of a thicket and looked around. Her green eyes widened as she picked up another scent: rogue. It was fresh. She followed the trail to some bushes. Finally something exciting! There'd been reports of one specific rogue taking prey, and Honeypaw guessed she'd found it. She stopped when the trail ended, one pale ginger paw hanging in the air. She hissed and stepped forward to peer into the bush. Suddenly, a bundle of black fur jumped out and pinned her. She yowled and tried to push the black tom off. He kept her pinned and snarled at her. "Owww!" Honeypaw wailed, "Get off, you stupid furball! You smell like a dead fly who got stuck in a pile of dirt and vomit. GET OFFFF!" He loosened his grip and started laughing. She kicked at his stomach and got up, hissing in annoyance. "Well, that's a first," he mumbled half to himself. She growled and glared, fluffing out her fur. He looked up at her, his blue eyes sparkling in amusement. "You're the first cat I've met who can't fight." That got on her nerves.

[C]"Can!"

[C]"Can't!"

[C]"Can!"

"Can-" He stopped as Honeypaw lurched forward and pawed his face, then bit his tail. "Yes I can!" He started laughing again. "You're lighter than a butterfly!" Honeypaw flattened her ears and tried again, this time batting his muzzle. He merely stepped back and made her trip on her face. She hissed and tried to get up but her back leg was stuck under a tree root. The tom laughed at her, then bent down. He gripped the root in his teeth and Honeypaw struggled, squirming around. "Would you stop struggling, Butterfly?" The tom muttered. Honeypaw rolled her eyes and stopped moving. He lifted the root and she shot up, shaking her fur from the dirt that had collected. He stared at her expectantly. When she didn't answer, he cleared his throat and flicked his ears back and forth. Honeypaw rolled her eyes and mumbled: "Ugh. Fine. Thanks, I guess, but you're STILL a no good flea-bitten toad." He grinned and flicked his ear.

[C]"Well, what's your name?"

[C] "Honeypaw."

[C]"That's a mouthful. I think I'll just stick with Butterfly. I'm Rye."

[C]"Well if you call me Butterfly, then I'll call you Flea because you're a hundred times more annoying." Rye grinned again.

[C]"So why are you here anyways, Butterfly?"

[C]"Don't think it concerns you. Go away." She flicked her tail in dismissal and turned to continue her search. "You're a clan cat, aren't you?" Honeypaw nodded without looking at him. "What are you looking for?" "It's called bright-eye. It's a pink flower and it smells good." Rye looked in the other direction, then stopped after a moment. "This?" He gestured to a clump of pink flowers. Honeypaw inspected it and tilted her head. She carefully nipped the flowers and left the roots. "Thanks again," she said and stood up to head back. "Well, bye, Flea. You know my clan is pretty mad at you for stealing prey, right? And they're pretty menacing when they're mad!" He rolled his eyes at her. "I think I can manage a few butterflies like you," he teased, "speaking of which, you definitely need someone to help defend you from the big bad non-clan cats on your way home." Honeypaw opened her jaws to protest, but Rye smacked his tail over it.

"Shut up," he hissed. "Don't tell me to shu-" he covered her mouth again. "Run when I flick my tail," he whispered. Honeypaw felt fear creep up on her and she nodded quietly. She could hear it now: a dog was barking not so far off. "Why don't we just run now?" Honeypaw hissed, "We can outrun it; I'm fast." Rye shook his head. "That's Old Chomper. He preys on cats who stray too far alone and he smells fear. He's faster than a hare; best just stay still." Honeypaw tried to stop herself from shaking and pressed against him. She heard Old Chomper come closer. She felt tremors in the ground as the dog came closer. She felt it stop and sniff for them, then shoot its head up to look her right in the eye. It gave a piercing yowl of triumph. "GO!" Rye shrieked. The cats ran faster than they'd ever run before. Honeypaw pictured the dog tearing through the CrystalClan camp and turned left. "Follow me!" She shrieked over the wind. She didn't look over to see if he'd heard, just hoped that he had and kept running. Rye burst ahead of her and pointed towards a tree with his tail. Honeypaw nodded; they were far enough now that the dog wouldn't find camp. Rye jumped up the tree, then yowled in pain; he hung from the tree branch by one paw. Honeypaw leapt up the tree and scrambled up the bark. The dog's loud barking shook the tree and it constantly bumped into it. Rye regained his footing and limped to help Honeypaw, whom was slipping. Honeypaw regained balance herself and stood beside Rye on the branch. Both of them were shaking badly and their claws were dug so hard into the tree that they were practically part of it now.

They spent a long, terrifying time in the tree until a twoleg's call echoed in the distance. Old Chomper whimpered and reluctantly left the cats alone. They stayed in the tree a bit longer before Honeypaw gingerly climbed down. Rye followed, wincing with pain as he forced wait onto his front left paw. "You've just wrenched it,'' Honeypaw soothed, "but you'll have to see Cloudfrost so we can treat you." Rye nodded and leaned against her for support. They arrived at camp only to be gwaked at by their clanmates. Turtlefoot ran to get Hawkstar. "Call off the search patrols!" Lotustail yowled. Blossompaw, Silverpaw, and Ivypaw rushed forward. "Sissy!" Blossompaw gasped, embracing Honeypaw. "Where were you?" "Are you okay?" Silverpaw asked. "Who's this?" Ivypaw questioned, sniffing Rye with wide green eyes. He pressed against Honeypaw nervously. "I'm fine. I'll tell you later. Ivypaw, go away." Ivypaw hissed and glared, arching her brown back. Honeypaw noticed Beeflower stay well away, giving her daughter a murderous glare. Honeypaw bared her teeth. 'See, Mom? I can be a jerk too. I'm not in the mood.' A crowd soon clouded around poor Rye. They barely noticed Honeypaw, but she refused to leave her friend's side.

Author's note:

( ͡ ͜ʖ͡ ) okay, so I'm not really proud of this chapter. There's a lot more dialogue than any of the other chapters. It's kind of unfinished because it's not really the ending I was going for. Buuuuttt I'm tired and I'll add more in the next chapter. All characters belong to me except for Dogpaw, Silverpaw, Halfface, Boneclaws, and Cariboupaw whom belong to my bestie Peach Sofa. Criticism is welcome! What did you think of this chapter?

[S]do you ship it?

Byeeeeeee!


	4. Bittersweet Chapter 3

"Silence!" Hawkstar's yowl broke the crowd. 'Oh, thank goodness. I don't know how much more Flea could take of that,' Honeypaw thought. The crowd dispersed besides three cats: Ivypaw, Blossompaw, and Silverpaw. Silverpaw sat to Honeypaw's left and Blossompaw quickly sat next to Rye, shielding him from the nosy Ivypaw. "Turtlefoot has told me that Honeypaw has brought a rogue to our territory…the rogue that has been stealing all our prey." His amber eyes drank Rye in, then flickered to Honeypaw, who forced herself not go shy away. "Yeah, that's right," Rye declared, stepping forward bravely. "I'm Rye, the rogue that 'has been stealing your prey'. Sorry, I had no idea it belonged to you." Honeypaw noticed him bite back a growl before continuing. "Bu- Honeypaw over here - " He flicked his tail to the pale ginger she-cat. She avoided Hawkstar's amber eyes and pawed at the grass. "was collecting some herbs or whatever when I got in her way. A dog chased us up a tree and we had to stay there for a while. I hurt my paw and, well, now we're here." Rye looked around defiantly, then stared back at Hawkstar.

Hawkstar flicked his tail, raised his head high, and glared at both Honeypaw and Rye. "We will heal you," he said at length. Relief flooded through Honeypaw and she realized just how nervous she'd been. "BUT," he added sternly, " you are severely in our debt. You will join the clan and hunt and fight for it." Rye opened his mouth to argue, but Honeypaw quickly stepped in. "Please," she begged quietly. Rye looked at the tiny apprentice, then nodded. "I accept." Hawkstar narrowed his yellow eyes and flicked his dark brown tail. "Very well. You shall be known as Fernpaw from now until you're a warrior. Fuzzywhiskers will mentor you." Fuzzywhiskers jumped in surprise at the mention of her name. Fernpaw flinched as she padded over to him and braced himself up to run away, but Honeypaw carefully pressed against him.

"Hold still, will you?" Honeypaw growled impatiently. Fernpaw kept fidgeting restlessly, flicking his black tail on her face. "Fernpaw!" Honeypaw yelled, "It won't get-" his tail tickled her nose and she broke into giggles. Cloudfrost cleared her throat and narrowed her amber eyes at them from where she sat in a corner, sorting herbs. Honeypaw quickly returned to her work, her face scrunched up with concentration. Fernpaw had already licked his paw clean of blood, and Honeypaw had already applied the poultice. She applied the cobwebs, then smiled in triumph. Fernpaw opened his mouth to say something, but Ivypaw burst into the medicine den. "Fernpaw!" She gasped, her dark green eyes gleaming. The brown apprentice rushed forward to the black tom, nearly knocking Honeypaw over. Fernpaw looked at her and Honeypaw flicked him with her tail for reassurance. "Remember me?" Ivypaw purred, "I didn't get to tell you my name! I'm Ivypaw and I'm wayyy more interesting than Honeypaw." She frowned at Honeypaw as Fernpaw shifted uncomfortably. "Hey, I don't think that's-" he was interrupted by Marshwhisker's yowl. "Ivypaw, c'mon!" The tall brown apprentice dashed after her mentor and turned back to smile at Fernpaw. Honeypaw barely had a moment to laugh at her strange antics, but Fuzzywhiskers should shyly padded into the den. "Hello," the soft gray tabby she-cat greeted. She dipped her head and looked around for Cloudfrost, who had resorted to napping. Honeypaw smiled my expectantly in the awkward few moments that passed. "So!'' Fuzzywhiskers finally said, her voice breaking. "Is Fernpaw okay for training?" Honeypaw thought for a moment, then turned to Cloudfrost in doubt. Her mentor pretended to be asleep, but kept one fluffy white ear up to hear. Honeypaw nodded unconfidently. "I think he can try short distances, but not too much. Go slowly when walking and stay close to camp just in case." She turned to Fernpaw, a playful fire glittering in her green eyes as she threatened: "But tell her IMMEDIATELY if anything bothers you. If I find out you didn't - and, mark my words, I will - I will personally claw your face off and hang it above the herb store, you flea-ridden no good rodent!" The friends both laughed and Honeypaw swore to herself that she saw Fernpaw look back at her before they disappeared through the exit.

Honeypaw spent a while in the medicine den, sorting herbs while Cloudfrost and Hibiscuspaw slept. Honeypaw smiled to herself as she curled in her own nest to finally get rest. "Psst!" A voice whispered. It sounded both eerie and hypnotizing. Honeypaw shot up, her green eyes wide with confusion and alarm. "Honeypaw." Now there were several whispers. She tilted her head and stared at nothingness. She was no longer in the medicine den, but, rather,a dark abyss. The small she-cat walked around in what seemed to be an endless circle for a bit, then growled with frustration. She dug her claws into the black floor, then gasped as she saw an opening beneath her. The darkness ripped around her like a scrap of paper to reveal blinding white, then she landed in a near-black pool of water. "Welcome, Honeypaw," an eerie voice greeted, sending a chill down Honeypaw's spine.

"Honeypaw!" Cloudfrost yelped. Honeypaw woke up to see her mentor standing over there, her yellow eyes wide with horror. Honeypaw shot up immediately. "Yes?" "Honeypaw, when you were asleep, did you- did you dream.. Like, at all?" Honeypaw hesitated, thinking it could be a prophecy. 'No, I should figure it out first, then tell her,' Honeypaw thought. She shook her head calmly at her mentor, who didn't seem convinced.


End file.
